All Episodes

Episode 048 Ramon HacheBergen County CommissionerShow Notes: Ramon Hache was the previous mayor of Ridgewood and is now a Bergen County Commissioner. His career started in the financial sector before he reassessed his entire life and dedicated himself to service,...

Episode 047 Jay DalyGM, Garden State PlazaShow Notes: Jay Daly is the General Manager of Garden State Plaza—the biggest (depending on who you ask) mall in New Jersey and one of the biggest in the Northeast. The enormous facility includes nearly 300 stores, sprawls...

Episode 046 Daniela MusanoOwner, Araya RebirthShow Notes: Daniela started her business at just 23 years old. And to be a successful entrepreneur, she says, you have to be OBSESSED. She learned from her father about attention to detail, risk-taking, and work ethic. How...

Episode 045 Chris KaplanisManaging Director, RTA TriathlonShow Notes: Chris Kaplanis shares his story of being a kid with an entrepreneurial bent to someone who would later leave his job at GE Capital to become a full-time triathlon coach--alongside his wife,...

Episode 044 Ernie LamourCEO, Ridgewood YMCAShow Notes: Ernie Lamour has been the CEO of the Ridgewood YMCA for about 5 years. He was originally born in Haiti and moved to Stamford, Connecticut as an 8 year old. He was the youngest of six kids! His dad said he could...

Episode 043 Ira RobbinsCEO, Valley BankShow Notes: This week I sit down with Valley Bank CEO, Ira Robbins. Valley has branches all over New Jersey, New York, and other states--including right here in Ridgewood. Ira has spent his entire career working at Valley. He...

Episode 042 Jim ParksPresident, Parks Wealth ManagementShow Notes: Jim Parks is one of the nicest people you’ll meet. His big smile and patient approach make him an ideal fit for serving clients during periods of extreme market volatility. Jim is a wealth manager,...

Episode 041 Eric FluetOwner, Get it Done MarketingShow Notes: Ridgewood resident Eric Fluet somehow transformed a long career in the amusement park industry into his own marketing firm, focusing on...you guessed it...amusement parks. He gets the luxury of working...

Episode 040 Arthur LynchFounding Partner, Lynch Law FirmShow Notes: Arthur Lynch and his brother have been running the Lynch Law Firm for almost 30 years. We talk about how he grew up working hard in the Bronx, why he decided to be a lawyer, and how he ended up doing...

Episode 039 LargeMedia personality, Barstool SportsShow Notes: Michael McCarthy - aka “Large” from Barstool Sports - talks about his path from the trading floor to the media world.  Many years ago, his edgy writing spread all across the Wall Street trading community....

Episode 038 Nausil ZaheerOwner, Karma Organic SpaShow Notes: This week I sit down with the owner of Karma Organic Spa, in Downtown Ridgewood, to hear how Nasuil Zaheer made the American Dream his own. An immigrant from Pakistan, he was working as a high-end waiter...

Episode 037 Bart FederPrincipal, Bart Feder Executive CoachingShow Notes: Bart Feder had spent an entire career in the media business, working across the country in TV and radio news, both as an on-air presence and management executive. He rose up to roles including...

Episode 036 Stacey KlieschFounder, Stacey Ruhle Kliesch, Architect LLCShow Notes: Stacey Kliesch is a North Jersey native and longtime Ridgewood resident. She talks about how she ended up in architecture, and her career transition from being an employee to running her...

Episode 035 Paige Amesbury-MorrisOwner, Meetings By DesignShow Notes: Paige Amesbury-Morris says many people are confused by what she does. They think she’s a party planner. But her events are massive corporate affairs, with 15,000 people or more. It’s a serious...

Episode 034 Matthew Kuiken VP, Kuiken Brothers Show Notes: Kuiken Brothers has been a Bergen County staple for over 100 years. Matthew Kuiken, a Ridgewood resident, is now in charge of many of the day-to-day operations. Matt describes how his Dutch immigrant ancestors...

Episode 033 Amy NiddsOwner, White Glove GetawaysShow Notes: Ridgewood resident and former Wall Street veteran Amy Nidds has had a love of travel her entire life. After criss-crossing the globe, she eventually transitioned all the knowledge she’d built up into being a...

Episode 032 Dr. Daniel Yoo and Dr. Katie PassmanOwners, Glen Rock Smiles Pediatric Dentistry and OrthodonticsShow Notes: Three years ago, the sudden passing away of their father after a long battle with cancer brought together a brother and sister who had been...

Episode 031 Jim NesciCEO, Blue Foundry BankShow Notes: Jim Nesci is the CEO of Blue Foundry Bank, a North Jersey regional bank with 18 branches - two of them right here in Ridgewood. Those branches are about to be consolidated into the large downtown space where The...

Episode 030 John F. AmorosaCEO & Managing Member, The Toresco CompanyShow Notes: John Amorosa is the CEO of The Toresco Company, which owns Ridgewood’s tallest building. You’ll probably recognize it: the 5 story brick building downtown at 45 North Broad Street,...

Episode 029 MarySue DwyerOwner, BeRibbonShow Notes: A couple years after leaving her Wall Street job, Ridgewood resident MarySue Dwyer started making women’s ribbon belts in her basement. Since then, her business has consistently grown into a broader fashion empire....

Episode 028 Rob WunderCo-Founder, YumEarthShow Notes: Rob Wunder shares with me the unique philosophy of his business approach that has allowed him success as an entrepreneur on multiple occasions. On one hand, he is trusting, brimming with optimism, and filled with...

Episode 027 Carolyn Butler and Rich AmsingerCo-Founders, BorobabiShow Notes: Ridgewood couple Carolyn Butler and Rich Amsinger started Borobabi during the pandemic to cut down on all the waste involved with children’s clothing. Borobabi (pronounced “borrow baby”)...

Episode 026 Kerri PilchikOwner, Kerri Pilchik DesignShow Notes: After spending 14 years as an environmental lawyer in Manhattan, Kerri Pilchik finally broke out to follow her passion as a fulltime interior designer. She now has her own firm right here in Ridgewood. ...

Episode 025 Jennifer ParsekianBroker Associate, KW Village Square RealtyShow Notes: Jennifer Parsekian is a lifelong Ridgewood resident, and has spent the last 28 years as a real estate agent in town. She shares with me the crazy stories of what business has been like...

Episode 024 Shannon OrrOwner, Clay Paper Scissors StudioShow Notes: Shannon Orr started Clay Paper Scissors studio because of her passion for making things. She’s the ultimate-DIY person, a professional architect raised by a civil engineer. She founded the studio in...

Episode 023 John Palatucci Musical Director, Orpheus Men's Chorus Show Notes: For over 30 years, John Palatucci has been musical director of Ridgewood’s Orpheus Club Men’s Chorus. The organization has been around since 1909. For over a century the group has had to...

Episode 022 Max ViolaOwner, Pearl RestaurantShow Notes: Max Viola spent countless hours at his parents’ restaurant while growing up in Bergen County. He was only in his 20s when he felt ready to launch his own Italian restaurant, right here in Downtown Ridgewood. We...

Episode 021 Glenn CarloughOwner, Steel Wheel RestaurantShow Notes: Glenn Carlough is a Bergen County native who had always wanted to open up his own restaurant. He jokes with me he’s practically never had a real job after graduating college, spending much of his early...

Episode 020 Miho GrantOwner, Miho Grant PhotographyShow Notes: Miho Grant shares her story coming from Japan, leaving behind her corporate job after becoming a mother, and transitioning to a full-time professional photographer based right here in Ridgewood.  In the...

Episode 019 Fara McNeilOwner, CKO Kickboxing AllendaleShow Notes: Fara McNeil is a Ridgewood resident and the owner of CKO Kickboxing up the road in Allendale. Fara tells me how kickboxing personally changed her life--helping her lose 75 pounds after having three...

Episode 018 Rob WunderCo-Founder, YumEarthShow Notes: Rob Wunder is the rare entrepreneur who co-founded two companies in two totally different industries and led the way in fundamentally changing each one.  His YumEarth venture kicked off the entire organic candy...

Episode 017 Peter MuellerPresident, Upper Ridgewood Tennis ClubShow Notes: Peter Mueller is the President of the Upper Ridgewood Tennis Club, an institution that’s been around for over 100 years. Peter tells me about the extreme difficulties in running a tennis club...

Episode 016 John F. RussoLawyer, Entrepreneur, Real Estate OwnerShow Notes: John Russo’s family has been in Ridgewood for a century. From very poor beginnings and facing discrimination for being Italian, the Russo family has gone on to become major real estate owners...

Episode 015 Scott LiefPresident, Ridgewood Chamber of CommerceShow Notes: Scott Lief is a very busy man. He is the President of the Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce, the President and Co-Founder of Ridgewood Business Connections, and works his day job as a senior...

Episode 014 Meg Antonelli TikTok Influencer "Costco Mamma" Show Notes: Meg Antonelli has seemingly out of nowhere become a massive sensation on TikTok. The lifelong Ridgewood native (who grew up and raised her family here until a few months ago) has generated millions...

Episode 013 Rob KeveCEO/Co-founder of FlowShow Notes: Rob Keve is the CEO and co-founder of Flow, a global e-commerce technology company. Rob shares his experience - and mistakes - as an entrepreneur. He also talks about his journey from the U.K. to Ridgewood.  He...

Episode 012 Brian GiammarellaFounder, Rock Hammer InvestmentsShow Notes: Brian Giammarella started off on a typical path: getting his computer science degree and writing software for big banks and hedge funds. But then 2009 hit, and Brian felt he needed a change...a...

Episode 011 Gary KolesaireOwner of The Tobacco Shop of RidgewoodShow Notes: I have never smoked a pipe or cigar in my life, and yet I am blown away by how Gary Kolesaire runs The Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood, a business he and his wife have owned since 1979. Every single...

Episode 010 Hyungmin MunOwner of Bibillia RestaurantShow Notes: Hyungmin Mun is the owner of Bibillia, one of Ridgewood’s newest restaurants. Min had the unfortunate luck, because of construction delays, of having his restaurant open in March 2020...exactly when the...

Episode 009 Gary DedoussisCEO/Owner of Core Technology SolutionsShow Notes: Gary Dedoussis is the founder, owner, and CEO of Core Technology Solutions. He’s the guy behind those advertising screens inside of elevators and the massive deployment of network routers used...

Episode 008 Aidan WalshFounder and CEO of RacefasterShow Notes: Is Ridgewood’s own Racefaster about to be the next Lululemon? If you’ve ever thought Racefaster was just another running store, think again. Owner Aidan Walsh started as a running coach in town who was...

Episode 007 RJ KonnerActor, Producer, Senior VP of WOF EntertainmentShow Notes: RJ has lived many lives all in one. His first career was in the car dealership business, following in the footsteps of his father, uncles, and grandfather. His family’s dealerships were a...

Episode 006 Josh FordOwner of Ford LegalShow Notes: This week I sit down with Josh Ford, a true modern Renaissance man. He’s a geologist who became a Manhattan corporate lawyer, and then went out to start his own business, Ford Legal, based right here in downtown...

Episode 005 Arnold LauOwner of Ridgewood Karate AcademyShow Notes: Arnold Lau is the owner of Ridgewood Karate Academy right here in downtown Ridgewood, NJ. Arnold bought RKA in 2016 after a long history of owning other fitness and real estate properties - all while...

Episode 004 Renu VitaleExecutive Coach and Strategic Advisor at Renu Vitale CoachingShow Notes: This week on the BizWood Podcast I sit down with Renu Vitale, a Ridgewood resident who runs Renu Vitale Coaching. She tells me about the many high-powered and high-paid...

Episode 003 Todd RothmanOwner/Director of Deerkill Day CampShow Notes: Todd Rothman is a Ridgewood resident and owner/director of Deerkill Day Camp, a summer camp for school-aged kids in nearby Suffern, New York. Todd talks about his surprising journey from Wall...

Episode 002 Bob Larson President of Berman Larson KaneShow Notes: This week's guest is Bob Larson. He's a Ridgewood resident and the founder of Berman Larson Kane, a NJ-based staffing firm, one of New Jersey's Best Places to Work in 2007 and 2008. Bob shares his...

Episode 001 George CheahNew Jersey Pickleball Association FounderShow Notes: George Cheah joins me this week. He founded and runs the New Jersey Pickleball Association, and he’s based right here in Ridgewood. We touch on a few aspects of his career, including working...